When Steve Jobs announced Monday morning that he was taking a third leave of absence from Apple to deal with unmentioned medical issues, the stock was poised to take a drubbing when trading resumes Tuesday; the price is already down in overseas trading. Unlike most other tech companies, Jobs is regarded as so intertwined with the success of the company he co-founded, it\u2019s hard to imagine how it could possibly survive without him.<\/p>\n
Lest we forget, his second medical leave, in 2009, lasted nearly six months, during which time he received a liver transplant; he was treated for pancreatic cancer during his first absence from Apple. COO Tim Cook, considered the best inventory management person in American industry, was placed in charge, and Apple\u2019s sales continued to soar. New products were released without let-up, though it\u2019s quite possible Jobs gave them the green light before his departure, or perhaps reviewed them during his recovery.<\/p>\n
According to a report in The New York Times, Jobs, of late, has appeared more emaciated than ever, and has only come to the office two days at work, choosing to have his lunch in his office rather than the company cafeteria. To be fair, such reports have not been confirmed by Apple, and I don\u2019t expect they will be. In his statement to Apple employees announcing his medical leave, Jobs stated: \u201cMy family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The timing of the announcement is also curious, although it may make sense once Apple\u2019s quarterly financials are disclosed Tuesday afternoon. For one thing, if Apple reports a record quarter, even though Jobs wasn\u2019t present on a full-time basis during that period, it might dilute the concerns that Apple cannot possibly persevere without him. Certainly the way he restored the company to profitability makes him seem indispensable, but a lot of the hard work was performed by the people he hired, such as COO Tim Cook, head product designer Jonathan Ive, and loads of other executives and their teams. This may be why Jobs has almost always, of late, praised his employees for their hard work creating Apple\u2019s iconic gadgets.<\/p>\n
Of course, those privacy requests will not survive real world scrutiny. Apple is already under fire for not providing sufficient details about the health of their mercurial CEO, nor a clear-cut succession plan. Such a move, evidently to the board\u2019s way of thinking, might cause the chosen successor to be bombarded with solicitations from rival companies. At the same time, the financial community wants to be reassured that Apple will continue to function properly if Jobs\u2019 latest medical leave becomes permanent.<\/p>\n
From the moment the announcement was made public, the print media and TV talking heads were busy speculating over the extent of Jobs\u2019 illness, and the prospects for recovery. This sort of morbid discussion is typical for someone in the public eye. For Jobs, such talk occurs because he has become the most famous CEO on the planet. Apple\u2019s path from a near-death experience to becoming the largest tech company on the planet, based on market cap, is the stuff of legend.<\/p>\n
Now I\u2019m not about to count Jobs out. His last medical leave resulted in talk of that nature, with all sorts of dire predictions that he wasn\u2019t long for this world. It\u2019s safe to say, however, that anyone who has suffered from cancer and other ills, particularly if they receive an organ transplant, will probably have ups and downs, according to what the medical experts say. Jobs is likely taking all sorts of immunosuppressant drugs to prevent rejection of that new liver, along with a cocktail of other medications, and serious side effects are likely.<\/p>\n
It may well be that Jobs simply needs to spend a few months at home to receive the proper treatment, although he says he\u2019ll remain CEO and will continue to be involved in Apple\u2019s strategic decisions. Without knowing the facts behind this decision or his condition, I\u2019m inclined to think he deserves a rest, and certainly millions of people out there, Apple customers and otherwise, are rooting for his eventual recovery.<\/p>\n
The other question is, of course, the extent of Jobs\u2019 involvement since returning to Apple in mid-2009. If he has truly reduced his direct participation in company affairs, all of their great product executions were accomplished by others, with his approval. If that\u2019s the case, maybe Jobs can continue to work part-time at Apple, even direct from his home, and concentrate on getting better.<\/p>\n
I suppose the real question is whether this medical leave is, as feared with the last, a permanent decision, even if Jobs survives and his health improves. Despite the concerns over a secret succession plan, it may well be that Cook has long been groomed for the top spot, even though he doesn\u2019t have the magnetic personality of a Steve Jobs. It\u2019s possible that, with a little training, he can become a little looser in his public demeanor, although that may not matter if Apple continues to manage public information as effectively as they have up till now, at least in most respects.<\/p>\n
My gut feeling is, regardless of the condition of Steve Jobs, his company is in safe hands, and will continue to lead the pack among players in the tech industry for many years to come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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